Combustion engine



W. HARPER, la.

COMBUSTION ENGINE. APPLICATION HLED JUNE 3,1918.

Patent-ed Apr. 25, 1922.

1, y G5155 M@ UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM HARPER, JR.. OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR. BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,

TO SKYWING AIRCRAFT CORPORATION,

NEW YORK.

OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

To all '1o/tom it may concern:

Re it known that l, WILLTAM HARPER, Jr., a citizen of the United States. and a resident of New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Combustion Engines, of which the following is a speciication. l

This invention relates to combustion engines and has particular reference to im provenients in aviation engines of the rotary cylinder type.

AAn object of this invention is to improve the construction of such engines in such man ner as to reduce the waste of lubricating oil which occurs at present. The common practice now is to spray the lubricating oil into the incoming charge, which mixture passes directly from the bottom of the cylinder into the explosion space through a valvein the piston head. The result is that most of the oil passes directly through the valve at a high velocity due to the velocity of the charge plus the centrifugal velocity of the relatively heavier particles of oil mixed in the charge, the. oil particles on account of their greater gravity having greater centrifugal velocity and tending to follow the shortest and most direct path, which is axially of the cylinder and straight through the central piston head valve. By this invention, I provide a tortuous path for the combined oil spray and gaseous charge mixture. preferably adjacent the circumference of the cylinder and within the trunk of the piston toward the head, the head being provided with a depending baille around which the charge must pass in order to reach and pass through the central inlet valve to the firing chamber. It results from this that the relatively heavy oil particles whether of lubricating oil or ungasified fuel are largely retained by the cylinder head and baille surface. without being wasted through the valve, the condensed oil then feeding by vcapillary attraction and centrifugal force through oil holes in the trunk of the piston to the cylinder bearing surface. This sep- A aration is aided by the difference in velocity or relatively heavy oil particles, and relatively' light vapor or gas, the latter more easily passing around the baille, while the former are trapped by the piston head and coa-lesce into li uids, unless vaporized by the piston heat. ny ungasied fuel which is Patented Apr. 25, 1922.

191s. serial No. 238,971.

caught in this manner is partially or wholly cracked or gasified by the heat of the piston, and consumed in the cylinder.

A further feature of the invention resides in. a positively actuated inlet valve mechanism applicable to existing engines without changing many parts, thereby rendering it possible to quickly convert engines already built, such for example as the well known Gnome engine to my improved engine. The piston head carries a valve support, valve, and valve rocker actuated by yielding means adjustably carried by the connecting rod so as to positively open the valve during the suction stroke but. to yield so as to permit the valve to be held seated by cylinder pressure during the working stroke. The rocker is also counterbalanced so as to exert no lifting pressure on the valve by reason of centrifugal force, and the valve itself is also counterweighted for the same reason so as to hold it normally seated except when it is to be positively lifted. The parts of this invention. including the oil baille. the valve and the wrist pin yoke are combined in a single unit which can be installed in present engines, it simply being necessary to take out the present valve mechanism and substitute` mine, and to mount the yielding actuator on the present connecting rod. such conversion resulting in a, decided oil and fuel. economy, and large increase of power which is of great importance in view of the present scarcity of castor oil, and also in an increase of power and better fuel economy owing to better carburetion and positive valve action.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is an elevation, and

Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of one piston.

1 is the rotary casing carrying air cooled cylinders 2, 3 the fixed hollow shaft having crank pin ,4. `5 is the master-ring rotating on crank pin 4 and carrying the rigid connecting Vrod 6 connected to the piston 7 in the upper cylinder 2. The other pistons 7 are connected to the master-ring 5 by pivoted connecting rods 8 in the usual manner. Each piston is also provided with the usual non-interference notch 9.

The trunk and head of the piston may be made in any desired manner but are shown in one piece, the head being open in the center to receive a wehbed valve ring seat 12 having segmental gas ports and carrying valve 13 With the usual stein la. 'llueaded into the ring l2 is a ring 1G havingV a dcpending flangeor skirt 1'1", which torino; vwith the piston exterior thereof, the oil spray bail'- fling chamber, as will be hereina'itrexplained. The ring 16 also carries heavy depending lugs 18 forming a yoke and bored to receive the Wrist pin 19,.the .vrist pin being secured in the usual manner. rllne lugs `18 are connected by curved reinforcing Webs 20, so Jformed as to provide the gas passages 21 Within the skirt 17 and giving Ytree and ample passage .area through the valve 13 from the crank case. The valve stein bush- .ing 22 is threaded into the lug;Y il carried by the valve seat ring 12, and Vthe `lnishing 22 carries depending ears 24 in which are pivoted the valve stern counteriveight .levers 25, pivoting being effected by a U-shaped pin 26, and the inner endel oi" the counter Weight levers projecting into a slot in the valve stem lll. The valve is Anormally held seated under slight pressure by means ot a `double coil spring 28, Which engages the arrns 29 on the counterweight levers 25'. The spring 28 acting through the lovers Q5 holds the valve seated when the-.engine is at rest With the valve in normal seated position, and when the engine is operating, the Weights slightly overbalance the centrifugal :torce of the valve itself and hold it seated, so that centrifugal torce not re lied upon in-any respect to open the valve in this engine.

30 is thel valve rocker pivoted at 31 in eX- tensions 32 on the skirt 17, and having the countervveight 33. VTWhen the valve is seated, the end of the lever 30 rests `betvveen the end ott the valve stein and the wrist pin 26, the vupper end of the connecting rod being,` slotted through a sulicient arc 34 to permitthis. To operate the rocker 30. a still double spring actuator 86 is provided, 'which straddles-the valve stern and the rocker and `passes under the rocker and is adjustably connect ed at its lower end 37 by bolt38 and notched clamp washers 39 to the master-rod 6, and likewise in the other` cylinders, to the respec tive connecting` rods 8. Pins bold the end of the actuator 36 when not flexed, so as Ato Adarnp it and prevent vibration of' the end under the high .eng-ine speed.

When the valvel .is seated, with, ythe vpiston at its eXtreme upward position, t-he yielding rocker actuator 36 is not under any Lstress but as the piston moves down in the cylinder owing l'to rotation of the cylinder to the lettof the crank pin a,.the actuator 36 litt-s `the rocker 30 and imparts to the valve a multipliedinovement, causing the valve to open if .the cylinder is Working on the suction stroke. During the Working stroke, the cyl- Y lnder pressure holds` the valve vseated against the lifting force of the yielding actuator 36,l as'seen 1n the intermediate cylinder shownV on the drawing, 'which is part Way through the working stroke. The exhaust occurs during the outward stroke While the actuator 36 is out et contact with the rocker 30. The actuator 36 is adjustable vertically in the clamping device so as to change the tiniing, it being seen that by adjusting the actin ator upward the valve opens sooner than when it is adjusted so as to bring the part Which engages with the rocker 80 slightly out of contact therewith.. Also the actuator can readily be bent `to change the leverage or timing, it desired, and still `hold it norinally engaged with pinfS.

lllithin the piston is a dished plate 40 having ports 41 adjacent its periphery, for del'lecting the 'hiel and oil spray outuf'ardly, this plate being seated in the piston and held by an expanding spring ring 42, the ports il being above the bottone oi the skirt 1T, so that the mixture ot firing charge and lulnicatina` oil spray lirst strikes plate 40 and drops considerable oil, and then gasses 'upwardly through the ports 41 and is again de lccted around the lower edge ol: the skirt 17 before passing upwardly to and through the valve. The oil spray `particles being heayle'r than the firing charge and having greater centrifugal velocity condense on these sur-H ;aces and run through lubricating holes 14; inV

the `piston to thev cylinder surface. The ports 41 are triangular, and have raised rnns ou the inner side, so as to prevent drops of oil torniin on the edges ot the .ports and being drawn through. p A

To increase the rapidity of exhaust, each cylinder is provided With :i curved deflecting hood 47 which deflects the air across the eX- haust port t8 and out at 419, 50 being the` eX- haust valve located to be cooled by the 'blast across the ton and preferably actuated by the inccbanisin described in my aforesaid application. f

l t will be seen that by these'iniprovements, the oil spray .will largely condense on the piston, baille. and plate 40. `feeding thence y by capillary attraction and centrifugal force to the cylinder surface` althoughsuiiicient oil will Vbe carried around by the charge to lubricate the valve parts. ,Not only does this economae in expensive castor or other high grade oil, but better combustion is obtained with a cleaner engine.` Although the bailling arrangement may be applied to present engines vhaving suction actuated inlet valves, a decided advantage is secured in combination with positive valve actuating neeans in .elimination .of valve 4sticking found striking the 'not piston, and also cools the piston. so Vthat the formation of hot spots causing preignition is avoided. At the same time, the charge does not become heated to such extent asto reduce the volumetric efficiency, and carbon or tar does not tend t0 deposit the piston corner since there is no dead space, the charge practically scavenging the entire interior of the piston.

Avoiding preignition, permits higher compression.

A further afflvantage oli this invention is that the new parts can readily be added to exis-tuig engines as a complete unit, it only being necessary to periorm a few machining operations to the old parts, such as enlarging the hole in the piston, slotting the upper end the connecting rod, then adding the valve ring seat and associated parts, and clamping the actuator to the connecting rod in the proper position and applying the delimiter plate. The connecting rod length re niafis the same, and the slight raising of the valve seat and valve above the piston top has no objectionable effect.

Various changes and modifications may be made without departing 'from the scope of the appended claims.

lhat is claimed, is:

l. In a combustion engine lubricated by oil spray mixed with the fuel charge and having an inlet valve in the piston, means comprising a baiile within the piston surrounding the entrance side of the valve and a spaced plate for separating relatively heavy oil spray `from relatively light gaseous fuel charge.

2. A combustion engine having a piston, an inlet valve therein, a deflecting plate below the valve, and a battle between the plate and the valve entrance.

3. A combustion engine having a piston, an inlet valve therein, a. delecting plate below the talve arranged to deflect the charge in a radial direction, and a bafiie arranged to prevent direct passage oit the charge to the valve entrance.

4, A combustion engine having a piston, an inlet valve therein, and a deflecting plate below the valve arranged to def-lect the charge in a radial direction away from direct passane through the valve.

o. Means for converting suction operated inlet valves o't a rotary cylinder engine into positively actuated. valves protected from excess supply ot lubricating oil, cornprising a valve seat.` valve, rocker, connecting rod yoke and oil deliector adapted to be attached to the piston head, a rocker actuator adapted to be mounted on the connecting rod, and a deflecting plate adapted to be mounted on the piston below said oil deilector. y

6. A rotary cylinder combustion engine comprising a cylinder having a piston carrying an inlet valve for admitting charge from the crank case to the cylinder, and baffling means carried by the piston for directing the incoming charge against the piston head and then away therefrom before reaching the valve.

7. In a rotary cylinder combustion engine having yielding means for positively actuating a valve in the piston, means for damping vibration of said actuating means.

8. In a rotary cylinder combustion engine having an inlet valve in the piston, a yielding actuator for said valve mounted on the connecting rod, and means holding said yactuator against vibration.

9. In a rotary cylinder combustion engine having a positively actuated inlet valve in the piston, bafiling means carried by the piston comprising a transverse plate and a depending skirt tor separating oil and preheating the fuel charge before reaching the valve.

Signed at New York city, in the county of New York and State oi New York, this 6th day of June, A. l). 1918.

WILLIAM HARPER, JR.

Witness: K

IDA M. FITZPATRICK. 

